Getting More Attention

In the morning, Su Ran was making breakfast in the kitchen when Ye Qiao came out. Su Ran noticed that ever since he came back these past few days, Ye Qiao had been waking up early with the same routine as him. Had he gone out to have some fun and kicked his habit of sleeping in?

“Ranran ge, I’m here to help,” Ye Qiao said.

Su Ran had gotten used to him by now and pointed to the vegetables in the sink. “Then wash the vegetables.”

“Okay,” Ye Qiao said obediently.

Before long, the vegetables were washed. Su Ran glanced at them; they were pretty good, even better than how He Zhiwen washed them.

Ye Qiao wiped his hands, then walked around behind Su Ran, wrapping his arms around him to count his ribs.

Su Ran was preparing the seasoning. When Ye Qiao came close, Su Ran felt a little helpless. He said his body was a work of art, but even a piece of art shouldn’t be touched so often, right? Isn’t art supposed to be admired?

“Stop fooling around, I need to work,” Su Ran said.

Ye Qiao lowered his head, his nose grazing Su Ran’s neck as he deeply inhaled. “Just two more minutes.”

Su Ran, with his good temper, didn’t push him away but still felt an odd sensation. “…Ye Qiao, are you okay mentally…?”

He always felt that Ye Qiao’s actions were a bit unhealthy, especially with his excessive fascination with his bones. It gave him chills, and he wondered if it was some sort of fetish or psychological issue. People in the art world could be prone to such things, right?

Ye Qiao furrowed his brows, looked up at Su Ran, and didn’t understand his line of thinking. “Ranran ge, I’m fine.”

Su Ran shivered and instinctively glanced at Jiang Yi’s room. Being in the kitchen like this still made him uneasy. What if Jiang Yi came out right now and saw them like this? He didn’t even dare imagine how Jiang Yi would react if he heard their “artistic” explanation.

Thinking this, Su Ran turned around and pushed Ye Qiao away. “Don’t touch me, if your brother sees, he’ll misunderstand.”

Ye Qiao moved to Su Ran’s right side, leaning against the counter, his gaze flickering toward Jiang Yi’s room. A sly smirk appeared at the corner of his lips as he mumbled in a playful tone, “That would be exciting too.”

“What?” Su Ran turned to him.

Ye Qiao slowly shook his head, lifting his hand to smooth Su Ran’s hair at his temple. “Ranran ge, you’re really cute.”

Su Ran didn’t like being called “cute” by others. “If you have nothing to do, cut the meat.”

Ye Qiao chuckled softly, moving to the cutting board. “Okay, Ranran ge, I’ll listen to you. You’re even cute when you’re angry.”

Su Ran, “…”

•

In the afternoon, there was some strange noise coming from next door. Ye Qiao was irritated by the noise and, as he came out of his room, saw Su Ran talking to someone outside the door.

“Ranran ge, who are you talking to?” Ye Qiao asked, also looking outside.

Su Ran turned around and smiled. “He ge has moved in next door.”

Ye Qiao froze, his face darkening. As expected, his intuition was right—He Zhiwen was clearly here for someone, and it was obvious who.

The person in question, however, still looked completely oblivious.

At that moment, He Zhiwen appeared and said, “Don’t forget to come over to my place for dinner tonight.”

Su Ran responded, “I’ll come over later to help you tidy up.”

“I’ve hired someone. Just come over and help me with the arrangement,” He Zhiwen said.

“Okay.”

Su Ran turned around and closed the door, looking at Ye Qiao. “Let’s go to the neighbor’s place for dinner tonight.”

“Do we have to go?” Ye Qiao asked.

“Yes, we’re going to be neighbors from now on, and our relationship will definitely get closer,” Su Ran said, feeling like things might get more intense as time passed. After all, you two are rivals, so the tension would only grow.

Su Ran noticed Ye Qiao’s mood seemed off. “What’s wrong? Why do you look so down? Are you feeling unwell?”

Ye Qiao’s gaze darkened but then quickly turned into a smile. “Nothing, I’m fine. Let’s go together.”

Later in the afternoon, Su Ran went next door early to see if there was anything he could help with.

He Zhiwen’s house was similar to theirs, and right now, they were finishing up the moving process. The place was already cleaned, so he didn’t have much to do. When it was time for dinner, he planned to head to the kitchen to help out. The aunt was making dinner, so it wasn’t his show tonight. He was just there to help.

Once He Zhiwen finished, he came to the kitchen to find Su Ran and pulled him aside. “I have something for you.”

Su Ran looked at him curiously. “What is it?”

He Zhiwen led him to the bedroom, took a bag out of a drawer, and handed him a velvet box. He stared at Su Ran nervously. “Open it and see if you like it.”

Su Ran looked at the exquisite box in his hands, and when he opened it, inside was a watch. Although he didn’t know much about the brand, he could tell from the quality and craftsmanship that it was probably expensive.

“I don’t know if you’ll like it, I picked it out after a long time… If you don’t like it, it’s okay, just tell me what you like, and I’ll buy it for you,” He Zhiwen said seriously, looking at Su Ran.

Su Ran felt a bit embarrassed. He really liked it, but it seemed too extravagant, so he pushed the box back. “He ge, this is too precious, I can’t accept it.”

He Zhiwen immediately grabbed Su Ran’s hand. “It’s not precious. You’ve been taking care of Zhao Mingzhe for so long, I should thank you. Just take it. If you don’t like it, I’ll buy you something else.”

“I like it… It’s just…” Su Ran hesitated. He understood He Zhiwen’s intention, after all, he owed him a lot for taking care of Zhao Mingzhe. Accepting the gift was only right.

“It’s nothing,” He Zhiwen laughed. “I’m just glad you like it. I was worried you wouldn’t.”

Su Ran smiled. “Alright, thank you, He ge.”

“No need to thank me, I should be the one thanking you.”

In the evening, the dishes were all laid out on the table, and just as the doorbell rang, He Zhiwen immediately went to open the door. Jiang Yi and Ye Qiao were standing outside, with Jiang Yi handing over a gift. “Congratulations on your new place.”

“Thank you, come in,” He Zhiwen greeted them.

Ye Qiao took off his shoes at the entrance and looked inside, seeing Su Ran wearing an apron and setting the dishes on the table.

Anyone who didn’t know might think he was the housewife of this place, and that made Ye Qiao feel a rush of anger.

At that moment, Su Ran had finished setting the dishes and was adjusting them to make everything look more aesthetically pleasing when he suddenly felt a hand on his back. He turned around to see Ye Qiao.

Ye Qiao had a faint smile on his face. “Let me take off your apron.”

Su Ran didn’t stop him. He had gotten used to Ye Qiao’s behavior. He Zhiwen was showing Jiang Yi around the house, but his attention was still on the two of them, clearly noticing Ye Qiao’s deliberate actions.

Before long, He Zhiwen walked over and interrupted their casual conversation, his hand going around Su Ran’s waist. “Come, help me pick a wine.”

Ye Qiao’s gaze fell on He Zhiwen’s hand around Su Ran’s waist. His expression grew colder as he stepped closer, standing by Su Ran’s side and casually running his hand through Su Ran’s hair.

The undercurrents between the two didn’t escape Su Ran’s notice, but he only felt like He Zhiwen and Ye Qiao were both busy around him, while Jiang Yi’s attention was entirely on the wine.

Jiang Yi said, “President He, your wine rack is truly impressive.”

No response.

Jiang Yi repeated, “How about this bottle?”

Still silence.

Jiang Yi, “?”

Su Ran noticed him and quickly followed Jiang Yi’s lead, agreeing, “This bottle is good, let’s pick this one.”

He Zhiwen immediately smiled and agreed, “Okay.”

“Ranran ge has great taste,” Ye Qiao complimented.

Jiang Yi, “?”

By all accounts, he should have been the center of attention in this situation, yet it felt like Su Ran was getting all the focus.